The U.S.-based Boeing aircraft manufacturer has signed a contract to provide Iran with 100 planes, according to Ali Abedzadeh, head of Iran’s Civil Aviation Organization.

The news was published Sunday in the state-run ‘Iran‘ daily newspaper. The deal must still be approved by the U.S. government.

“Of the 250 [passenger] planes in Iran, 230 need to be replaced,” Abedzadeh told the newspaper. He added Iran had signed a contract with Boeing to provide 100 of the aircraft.

It’s the first time Iran has purchased anything from Boeing since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, according to Reuters.

On this day in 1991, Israeli Defense Forces accomplished a miracle and broke a world record for number of passengers transported in a plane, launching a covert mission to airlift thousands of people, thousands of miles away to bring them home to Israel.

It seemed impossible at the time, but Operation Solomon rescued 14,500 Ethiopian Jews on May 24 and May 25 and transported them 2,500 miles to a new life in Israel.

To date, the unprecedented airlift remains the largest aerial expedition in the history of the State of Israel and the largest transport of passengers in a single plane in the world.

In 1990, the Israeli government and the IDF became aware that the incumbent government of Ethiopia’s Mengistu Haile Mariam was coming closer to collapse or a coup. World Jewish organizations joined Israel in its concern for the Beta Israel, Ethiopian Jews whose mass emigration had to that point been impossible.

The Ethiopian government finally allowed all the Jews to leave the country at once in great part due to a letter from U.S. President George H.W. Bush. Up to that point, Mengistu was only willing to discuss their emigration in exchange for weapons.

U.S. Senator Rudy Boschwitz was sent as a special emissary by Pres. Bush to meet with the Ethiopian government to aid Israel in arranging the airlift. Assistant Secy of State for African Affairs Hank Cohen was also involved as he was an international mediator in Ethiopia’s civil war.

The operation itself was not publicized by media, thanks to a gag order under military censorship. The aircraft were all stripped of their seats in order to maximize their space.

Upon arrival 140 frail passengers received medical care while still on the tarmac; five pregnant women gave birth on the plane – they and their newborns were rushed to the hospital as soon as they arrived in Israel.

In 36 hours, 35 Israeli aircraft flew non-stop flights to transport 14,325 Ethiopian Jews to Israel. Among the aircraft were Israeli Air Force C-130s and El Al Boeing 7474s.

An Air France flight en route to Paris from Mauritania was forced to make an unscheduled stop in Kenya early Sunday morning after a suspicious device was found aboard the aircraft.

All passengers were safely evacuated from the Boeing 777, as bomb sappers rushed aboard to examine the unidentified device, which was found in a lavatory.

Air France Flight 463 was carrying 459 passengers and 14 crew members, according to Kenya police spokesperson Charles Owino.

“The pilots requested an emergency landing when a device suspected to be an explosive was discovered in the lavatory,” Owino told reporters.

The flight departed Mauritius at 9 pm for Charles DeGaulle Airport in Paris.

The aircraft landed at Moi International Airport in Mombasa, Kenya, according to Reuters and other news agencies.

El Al Airlines is in negotiations to add more than a dozen Dreamliner aircraft to its Boeing fleet, the company has announced.

El Al Chief Executive Officer David Maimon said in a statement, “I am proud to announce today (Aug. 6) the largest procurement program in El Al’s history.

“El Al’s board today authorized the company to hold talks with Boeing over the acquisition of wide-body Dreamliner aircraft for the purchase and lease of 15 planes in the next five years. This move is expected to be a significant leap forward in optimizing routes, passenger service and flight experience.”

Delivery of the new fuel-efficient 787-8 and 787-9 Dreamliners – an $800-$900 million order – would start in the first half of 2017 and continue through 2020, Maimon said.

Talks are expected to wrap up in the next few weeks, with the final price dependent on the final number aircraft. They will be used to replace the airline’s current aging planes on its medium and long-haul routes, including those to and from North American and Asia.

El Al also has the option to purchase 13 other aircraft from Boeing as well but did not offer details about that potential deal. The company has recently been acquiring other short-haul 737-900 aircraft to replace its aging line.

The European low-fare Ryanair Airlines announced Tuesday it is launching its first Israel flights with three new routes between Ovda Airport, northwest of Eilat and Budapest, Kaunas and Krakow.

The new service will begin in November, with two flights a week to each of the three European cities.

Ryanair also said that it “will continue to negotiate with the Israeli authorities over future routes.”

The Irish-based company’s chief commercial officer David O’Brien said:

We will strengthen our presence in Israel as time goes by. Eilat is a very unique tourist destination like Morocco and the Canary Islands and we are certain that we will fill the planes.

Negotiations between Israel and Ryanair have been taking place for several years.

The Negev is undergoing a boom with a massive transfer of IDF forces and bases to the southern Israel, the fast-growing change in Be’er Sheva’s becoming a high-tech center, and the extension of the high-speed north-south Kvish 6 (Highway 6) to Be’er Sheva.

Several major corporations, including Boeing, are investing in the new high-tech park next to Ben Gurion University, and Ryanair’s service will be convenient for soldiers and businessmen traveling to Europe.

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The airline apparently thought it could save some money by not paying for expensive ground time at JFK

An El Boeing 747-400 plane carrying 342 passengers to New York turned back to Israel early Thursday after indications of low oil pressure in one engine. Safety apparently was not a consideration for flying to Israel since the plane could have reached JFK in the same amount of time.

The passengers and crew landed safely at Ben Gurion Airport five hours later.

Flight 340 was about 2300 miles northwest of Spain when it turned around, Aviation Herald reported. One talkback noted that although the return trip must have frustrated passengers, expensive ground time at JFK probably was the reason for returning to Israel.

El Al also may have considered it more practical and efficient to repair the engine in Israel and reload the passengers on another airplane.

Passengers flying to New York at 1 a.m. Monday enjoyed a short flight before finding themselves back at Ben Gurion Airport after a technical problem was discovered.

El Al technicians had fixed the problem, or at least thought they had fixed it, before the plane took off after a four-hour delay at 5 a.m.

After approximately one-third of their way to New York, the pilot and crew turned back to Ben Gurion after discovering that the problem occurred again.

Passengers took off for a second time around 11 a.m. on a different plane.